Saturday 10 February 2007 18.57 EST
First published on Saturday 10 February 2007 18.57 EST

Africa On Screen London

This year's big, acclaimed release from Africa is undoubtedly Abderrahmane Sissako's Bamako, in which a people's court tries the IMF and World Bank for the dire situation Africa is in. It's a wide reaching political drama tied to the personal story of a couple's marriage breakdown, and Sissako and co-producer Danny Glover will be heading a panel discussion. If Bamako whets your appetite for African cinema, there are some older films on hand to sate it. Like Touki Bouki from 1971 which saw Senegal in a flux between old and new Africas. Or Djibril Diop Mambéty's 1970 Badou Boy which sees a lively, Charlie Chaplin-influenced never-ending chase between "Boy" and "Policeman" characters. More perspective is acquired with the sharply satirical Xala and Harvest: 3,000 Years, a tale of peasant farmers exploited by a wealthy Ethiopian landowner.

Local boy made good Gabriel Byrne kicks off this festival with a "public interview" and his Raymond Carver-adapted (and Australian-made) Jindabyne. There's more Irish talent onscreen with a wide selection of shorts, a new documentary on Neil Jordan and Cillian Murphy in Danny Boyle's sci-fi epic, Sunshine. And the rest of the world gets a decent look in. There are strands containing the latest from Denmark, Germany, France and and Canada - including Harlan Coben adaptation Tell No One and Patrice Leconte's droll My Best Friend - plus new indies such as Sherrybaby and Unknown.

This festival takes a few risks by having Sean Ellis' debut feature Cashback - an expansion of his Oscar-winning short of the same name - as its opening gala. More established names crop up elsewhere, though, such as Woody Allen's latest, Scoop, Zhang Yimou's hotly anticipated Curse Of The Golden Flower and Werner Herzog's Christian Bale-led Rescue Dawn. Other highlights include Shane Meadows' 1980s-set skinhead movie This Is England and Ryan Gosling's Oscar-nominated Half Nelson.

Cumbria isn't that well served by mainstream multiplexes, so fans of more esoteric fare haven't much hope of satisfaction other than with this great top-up festival. Many of these movies are making their first appearance in the region. They've even managed to snare the UK premiere of inner-city teaching drama Freedom Writers, starring Hilary Swank, as well as appearances from directors Andrea Arnold (presenting her Red Road) and Ken Loach (with a selection of past works). The bulk of the bill, though, is recent releases such as The Host, Pan's Labyrinth, and Miss Potter.